STORRS, Conn. — Azzi Fudd had 21 of her 27 points in the first half as second-seeded UConn rolled to a 103-34 win over Arkansas State in the first round of the NCAA tournament Saturday.

Freshman Sarah Strong added 20 points and 12 rebounds, five assists and five blocks in her NCAA tournament debut. Most of those came in the first half when UConn jumped out to a 66-16 advantage at the half, playing nearly flawless basketball.

The Huskies had runs of 22-0, 12-0 and 13-0 in the first half as UConn won its 31st consecutive first-round game.

UConn (32-3) scored 34 points in the first quarter, making all 11 of its 2-point shots. Many of those were layups coming off the press.

Arkansas State (21-11), which likes to apply pressure itself, had no answer for the Huskies.

Crislyn Rose led the Red Wolves with seven points. The team shot 17% from the field (12-for-70), including going 7-for-40 from behind the arc.

Rex Nelson

Rex Nelson has been senior editor and columnist at the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette since 2017, and he has a biweekly podcast called “Southern Fried.”

After graduating from Ouachita Baptist University in 1981, he was a sportswriter for the Arkansas Democrat for a year before becoming editor of Arkadelphia’s Daily Siftings Herald. He was the youngest editor of a daily in Arkansas at age 23. Rex was then news and sports director at KVRC-KDEL from 1983-1985.

He returned to the Democrat as assistant sports editor in 1985. From 1986-1989, he was its Washington correspondent. He left to be Jackson T. Stephens’ consultant.

Rex became the Democrat-Gazette’s first political editor in 1992, but left in 1996 to join then-Gov. Mike Huckabee’s office. He also served from 2005-09 in the administration of President George W. Bush.

From 2009-2018, he worked stints at the Communications Group, Arkansas’ Independent Colleges and Universities, and Simmons First National Corp.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Arkansas has hired Kelsi Musick as its women’s basketball coach, the school announced Friday.

The former Oral Roberts coach signed a five-year deal worth $600,000 a season. She led the Golden Eagles to postseason appearances in each of the past two seasons while increasing the team’s win total every year.

The Golden Eagles lost in the first round of the WBIT on Thursday to finish 24-9.

“As I spoke to Kelsi and people associated with her, I was impressed by her work ethic, enthusiasm and her ability to maximize resources in building winning programs at each of her coaching stops,” said Hunter Yurachek, Arkansas’ athletic director and vice chancellor. “She has proven to be a great relationship builder and communicator throughout her career to the benefit of her teams and student-athletes on and off the court. Having grown up and coached in Oklahoma, she has a familiarity with our area that will help her quickly connect with our state and fan base.”

Musick led Oral Roberts to a second-place finish in the Summit League this past season after a third-place finish in her second season in Tulsa. Her squad last season made history with the program’s first 20-win season since 2011-12 and made it to the postseason for the first time since 2011.

“I am incredibly honored and grateful for the opportunity to lead the women’s basketball program at the University of Arkansas,” Musick said. “This is a place with a proud tradition, passionate fans and a commitment to excellence in every way. I’m excited to get to work building something special. I want to thank Hunter Yurachek and his staff for their belief in me, and I can’t wait to pour into our student-athletes, compete in the SEC and represent this university with pride.”

Musick replaces Mike Neighbors, who resigned earlier this month after the team went 10-22 this year.